Coal | Facts, Uses, & Types | Britannica
Bełchatów; coal Power plant and coal mine in Bełchatów, Poland. Stasisław; Conversion. In general, coal can be considered a hydrogen-deficient hydrocarbon with a hydrogen-to-carbon ratio near 0.8, as compared with a liquid hydrocarbons ratio near 2 (for propane, ethane, butane, and other forms of natural gas) and a gaseous hydrocarbons ratio near 4 (for gasoline).